Liverpool were hopeful of signing £30million rated Douglas Costa from Bayern Munich. It was reported that the Brazilian has been unhappy at the Allianz Arena due to the lack of regular first-team opportunities under Carlo Ancelotti. As a result, he was seeking a move away to a club where he would play regular football, as it remains the only way to cement a place in the Brazilian national team on a regular basis. Since making his Brazilian debut in 2014, the 26-year-old has featured only in 18 games and has scored 3 goals.
The presence of a large contingent of Brazilian players like Roberto Firmino and Philippe Coutinho was an attractive proposition for Liverpool in their efforts to bring Costa to Anfield. However, Costa’s friend has claimed that the player is extremely happy at the Allianz Arena and would see no reason to move away from the German outfit at this moment. He said to German outlet Sport1, cited by Metro;
“No way! Douglas will not go to Liverpool, he prefers to stay at Bayern Munich. It’s a good life here.”
Costa has featured in 21 Bundesliga games and has scored 4 goals. Yet, only 13 of these games have been from the start. He last completed 90 minutes of football in the second week of March when he played the full game against Frankfurt in a 3-0 win for Bayern Munich. Since then, he has been reduced to being a bit part player. Franck Ribery and Arjen Robben continue to dominate the wings at Bayern Munich.
While the player himself has not ruled out a move to Anfield just yet, it appears that Liverpool are also keeping tabs on other German stars who can potentially strengthen the club in the summer. Julian Brandt is one of the top names in this regard. However, signing the 20-year-old will be much harder considering that a number of clubs are after his signature.
Liverpool are unlikely to give up the hope of signing Costa on the basis of this statement alone. However, the club would be aware that their chances of signing the player goes down significantly if they are unable to offer Champions League football. A 2-1 loss against Crystal Palace has seen Liverpool’s chances of finishing in the top-4 drop down. The Reds are one point ahead of Manchester City and 2 points ahead of Manchester United, but both teams have played a game less than Jurgen Klopp’s men.
Liverpool have the easier finish to the campaign with the remaining 4 games against teams from the bottom half, but it has been the Achilles heel for the club this season.
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